Lindsay and I just had our third little boy. We’re elated, but also, already talking about birth control. While having a girl would be amazing, four kids is just bonkers in our small home. We are 99.9% certain we are done having children. Done.
There are only two solutions when it comes to male birth control: condoms and vasectomy. Condoms have their place, but we tend to forget the rubber in the ‘throes of passion.’ Mom stop reading. There’s also that chance of the condom failing and those little bastards making a break for it. It’s pretty much out of the question. Which really only leaves vasectomy.
I started researching vasectomy this week. It’s a permanent procedure deserving of serious investigation. My fellow blogging dads have written some fantastic articles about this minimally-invasive surgical procedure, read gofatherhood.com here and/or dad-camp.com here. But here’s a quick Wiki-education: vasectomy involves severing the vas deferens, and then sealing it in a manner so as to prevent sperm from entering into the seminal stream (ejaculate) and thereby preventing fertilization.
Vasectomy sounds terrifying as it is, but during my continued research I stumbled upon an image even more disturbing. It’s called Vasalgel and it’s the future of birth control.
This image freaked me the hell out! It looks like a transparent snake or worm. Samuel L. Jackson would not approve. Get that motherf*cking snake away from my motherf*cking man-tackle!
As it turns out, the image is just an awkward representation of Vasalgel, a revolutionary non-condom birth control method for men. Vasalgel is actually a ”polymer hydrogel” that is injected into a man’s vas deferens. The gel forms a plug, blocking sperm from the ejaculate. The procedure is very similar to vasectomy. No sperm, no baby.
It’s also reversible.
If for some reason, say 7-10 (probably zero) years from now we decide to try again for a little girl, with this new procedure, the gel plug is simply washed out and the sperm begins to flow again. This stuff is crazy awesome if the trials (it’s currently being tested on baboons) prove effective.
Vasalgel is basically the magical birth control method we’ve been waiting on for most of our lives. However, it probably won’t be available until 2017…WTF?! Noooooooo!
In all seriousness though, I need to go stock up on condoms for a few more years.
For more information on Vasalgel, check out the Parsemus Foundation FAQ. These guys are doing their best to prevent big-pharm from shelving advances in birth control.
Credit: Men’s Health
Also, check out these vasectomy posts from my blogging buddies.